


The Despair of Emiru Hashimoto: School Life of Mutual Killing

by nirvana_in_springtime



Series: The Life and Despair of Emiru Hashimoto [1]
Category: Dangan Ronpa 3: The End of 希望ヶ峰学園 | The End of Kibougamine Gakuen | End of Hope's Peak High School, Dangan Ronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc
Genre: Blood and Violence, Canon Rewrite, Canon-Typical Violence, Character Death, Gen, No Romance, Original Character(s), Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-24
Updated: 2021-02-24
Packaged: 2021-03-14 10:33:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,950
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29665941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nirvana_in_springtime/pseuds/nirvana_in_springtime
Summary: Welcome to Hope's Peak Academy, a prestigious high school reserved for the nation's "ultimate" students. The home of the the heart and hope of Japan. But things take a twisted turn when Monokuma, a maniacal bear, takes a class of incoming students prisoner in a deadly game of despair. Enter Emiru Hashimoto, an upperclassman with memories of Hope's Peak whose entire world has just been turned upside down. Will she be able to the secrets of the Hope's Peak she knew? Or will she fall to despair in the end?
Relationships: Class 77 (Dangan Ronpa) & Original Character(s), Class 78 (Dangan Ronpa) & Original Character(s)
Series: The Life and Despair of Emiru Hashimoto [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2179992
Kudos: 3





	1. Preface

_“My life is a perfect graveyard of buried hopes.”  
― L.M. Montgomery, Anne of Green Gables_

_ Preface _

The massive high school towers over all the other buildings within the city block, surrounded by the sights and sounds of Tokyo. It's like the school stands at the center of the entire world. For some, it truly does. It brings in top students from every field imaginable; sports, music, gaming, writing, martial arts, gang leaders, you name it, Hope’s Peak has recruited it. It’s a government-funded school of privilege so to speak. People say that if you come here and manage to graduate, you'll be set for life. It was built to raise hope in the nation's future and sends out only the best of the best. Which makes Hope's Peak a pretty fitting name. There are two requirements to attend this school: One, you must already be attending high school; and two, you have to be the very best at what you do. No ordinary student can just decide to enroll. The only way you’re guaranteed in is if you're scouted by the school itself.

Enter Emiru Hashimoto. Super High School Level Astronomer. An upcoming second year at Hope’s Peak, member of class 77-B. She and her class mates are….well they’re an oddball bunch. But who isn’t? Honestly, when you gather a handful of the world’s greatest talents in one room, things are bound to be weird. But today was going to be a great day. See, it was the day of the Entrance Ceremony for the upcoming class, Class 78. And Emiru was the class appointed school guide. See, each class of Ultimates assigns one student to be a sort of mentor to the incoming underclassmen. Someone who took point on questions and showing them through the various facilities that Hope’s Peak had to offer. It was an easy gig, but the thing that always intimidated everyone was the pressure. But still, Emiru was eager. Meeting the new talent was exciting and finally becoming an upperclassman was just as thrilling. Adjusting her uniform once more, the young Ultimate closed the door to her locker where she had placed her book bag before making her way out the classroom door, turning as she passed one of my classmates. He locked eyes with the young astronomer, but for some reason Emiru couldn’t make out his face.

It was b̷̧̧̢̛̛̰͚̪̯̥̳͆͗͆̏̊̒̒̾l̴̞͕̞̲̏̒̓͌̑̓̾̕u̷͖̜͚̞̯͓̤͠r̶̟̻͔͍̳̘̠̱͊͒͂̈́͌̈̌͠r̴̡̗̥̯̬͚̳̳̽̆̑͊̚͝͝ŷ̴͖͖̘̝̟͙͈̎͗͆͛̇̈͘ͅ.

“Watch yourself Hashimoto. The fires of hell do burn and there is no escape, no matter how fast we may run.”

Smirking, Emiru made her way out the door with a small salute with her first two fingers, a sort of signature of hers.

“I’ll keep that in mind T̴̳̐̋̌à̴̖̗̳͊̍͌̚͜ṇ̷̢̤̺̬͔̲̼̏a̸͓̯̳̜͖̝̻̩̥̅͐̏̑̃͆͜ḵ̸̑̎̉͌͌a̵̢̡͎̠̫̓̄͋̃̀̓̇̑͝ . But right now, I’m running late.”

Making her way down the hall, Emiru almost ran clear into another one of her classmates, though the face was still b̷̧̧̢̛̛̰͚̪̯̥̳͆͗͆̏̊̒̒̾l̴̞͕̞̲̏̒̓͌̑̓̾̕u̷͖̜͚̞̯͓̤͠r̶̟̻͔͍̳̘̠̱͊͒͂̈́͌̈̌͠r̴̡̗̥̯̬͚̳̳̽̆̑͊̚͝͝ŷ̴͖͖̘̝̟͙͈̎͗͆͛̇̈͘ͅ. 

She made a note to get her vision checked later. Her talent would be wasted if she couldn’t see faces, let alone study the stars.

“Hey! Watch it Hoshi!” Laughing at the nickname and continuing down the hallway, Emiru finally made her way into the stairwell and slid down the bannisters before making it to the ground floor. The lobby was bustling with activity and teachers and new students alike took in Hope’s Peak as a new wave of hope entered its halls. Glancing towards the front door, she made eye contact with a group of students standing by the front door, looking awkward and out of place. With a new found burst of energy, Emiru made her way towards the new students, recognizing them as class 78-A. As soon as her foot hit the floor however, the halls surrounding her began to spin, colors swirling into an unfamiliar mixture and her head continued to do somersaults. A thick wave of nausea set in as Emiru felt like a large weight crashed down onto her body. Darkness engulfed her vision and the sounds of the once bustling hallway faded into nothing. Emiru felt her body hit the floor and as it did, everything stopped. The only thing left was silence.


	2. Prologue – Welcome to Despair High School

_“Despair is the price one pays for self-awareness. Look deeply into life, and you'll always find despair.”  
― Irvin D. Yalom, When Nietzsche Wept_

_Prologue – Welcome to Despair High School_

Time continued to pass, though Emiru was not sure nor could not tell you how long she lay there, immersed in the deafening silence. Finally garnering enough energy to open her eyes, Emiru took a moment to take in her new surroundings, grunting in pain as the world continued to spin for several moments afterwards. Her body still felt heavy as the world around her finally came into focus and she found herself in an unfamiliar classroom. The pattern surrounding her was some bright animal print and all the desks around her sat empty save the one she herself was sitting at. It looked like a normal classroom aside from the surveillance camera and metal plates on the windows.

‘Wait…’

Standing and making her way to the far end of the classroom Emiru took in the scene before her. Where the windows would be, or at least had been in her classroom, there were large metal plates. They were bolted down and, from the deep echoing sounds that came from them as she wrapped her knuckles against the cool steel, painfully thick. There was no prying these down or blasting through them. Instinctively, Emiru reached for her cell phone in her jacket pocket, only to find it wasn’t there. Not only that, her clothes had changed…She was no longer wearing the standard brown Hope’s Peak uniform, but now her everyday wear, which consisted of a burgundy shirt with a chest inlet, and plum windbreaker. Strange, Emiru could swear she was wearing her uniform when she came downstairs. A sudden wave of uneasiness overtook the Ultimate. These surroundings….was this truly the Hope’s Peak she remembered?

On her way back to the desk she had found herself dozing on, Emiru spotted a small leaflet on the corner of the desk. Gently lifting the paper, she found it to be incredibly light, likely made from regular printer paper. The drawings that littered the handmade pamphlet were scribbled haphazardly in crayon and they looked like the work of an elementary student. The outside read “Welcome to Hope’s Peak!” Flipping the leaflet open gently, the inside read, “ _The next semester is about to start. Starting today, this school will be your entire world."_

A shiver ran down Emiru’s spine.

Something about all of this didn’t sit right with the young astronomer. Like deep down in her gut, she felt unrest and even more so…

She felt _despair_.

The pamphlet said to meet in the gym at 8 AM. Glancing up at the clock on the wall, Emiru made out the time. 7:23 AM. She figured she’d head on down, maybe find some answers along the way. Making her way to the door of the classroom, placing her hand tentatively on the doorknob as she got close enough, another wave of despair crashed over my body. Somewhere, deep down, she knew something was terribly wrong.

She just prayed that she was wrong.

Emiru made her way down the dark corridor, the shadows cast along the walls causing this eerie feeling of uneasiness within her to grow. Finally making her way to the main hall, she stepped into the main entryway, but what she saw in front of her was like something out of a dystopian horror novel. The once open entryway, which had huge ornate doors and windows, was now some very well-designed electronic vault door. The door seemed set on a time lock system, though there didn’t seem to be any source of input for unlocking it. Emiru remained in the hallway, studying more of the surroundings for an unknown period of time. She found nothing to give any type of clue to what was happening or how the school came to be this way. These locks, the metal panels on the windows, it was all so extreme and out of place from the Hope’s Peak she remembered. What had happened?

The sound of footsteps behind her caused her to whip around to the inner corridor once again, only to notice several of the students from Class 78 wandering into the entrance hall. They made eye contact with the astronomer and for a moment it was like time stopped. There was an awkward silence as more of the class filtered in, staring in the same level of confusion Emiru had found herself in when she woke up. Before too much longer, someone finally spoke up.

“So do you mind telling us what the hell is going on?”

The tall, blonde male eyed Emiru with a condescending glare, his blue eyes bearing a strange hint of malice. Emiru felt her spine fill with ice. Finally shaking the uneasy feeling the male brought on, she turned to him before responding.

“I just got here” she tried to channel an equally threatening stare, but the truth was, that was more her sister’s forte. Satomi had always been the more…intimidating of the two. But Emiru’s effort seemed to do the trick, as the blonde male seemed to back off, though his arms remained crossed and he eyed her with an increasing suspicion.

She looked over the group in front of her. There were several in the group that she recognized; like Sayaka Maizono, a popular J-Pop Idol, and Leon Kuwata, a baseball prodigy who had played in the semi-pro circuit in high school. There was also the tall blonde from earlier, who she recognized as current heir to the Togami Empire, Byakuya, as well as well known fashionista, Junko Enoshima. Emiru made eye contact with Junko, and another wave of uneasiness settled in the pit of her stomach and she could feel her eyebrows furrow as she eyed the fashionista more closely. Something about her was…off. She did look different. Emiru shook off the feeling, though her brow remained creased. After a moment, the young Togami spoke up again.

“Well you’re obviously useless then,” Togami continued, glaring once again at the upperclassman. Emiru was already over his attitude.

“You really should learn to respect your upperclassmen. Especially a fellow Ultimate,” Emiru mused, smirking slightly as she saw a look of surprise cross the haughty heir’s features.

“Wait, so you’re an Ultimate?” the Ultimate Swimming Pro spoke up. Aoi Asahina. Emiru recognized her from the Olympic qualifiers earlier in the year. She's been breaking records in every competition she's been in since elementary school. The combination of her ability, appearance, and, unfortunately, her body proportions, were widely discussed online. Emiru cringed. But she didn’t let the thoughts hinder her much.

“Sure am!” She began, flashing a smile and thumbs up at the students in front of her, “Emiru Hashimoto, Ultimate Astronomer!”

The silence that followed her introduction was deafening, and Emiru felt like she was deflating. Though she couldn’t blame the lack of enthusiasm. After all, their circumstances seemed…grim.

“Wait, Hashimoto? Like, Hashimoto’s Theory of Dark Matter in Galactic Formation?”

‘That’s a mouthful,” Emiru visibly sweat dropped at the title. The theory had been in working stages, but for reasons unknown had been widely accepted among the science community.

“Yeah, it’s a working title though, I still haven’t verified all of my calculations,” Emiru stated quickly, rubbing the back of her head as she did so, slightly mussing the dark brown braid that ran down her back.

A small honey blonde girl peeked out from around Sakura Ogami, a widely known martial artist. She had been the one who spoke up earlier, and Emiru smiled lightly. Being recognized for her work always made her feel good, even under such seemingly dire circumstances.

“Hello, nice to meet you. I'm Chihiro Fujisaki...”

Fujisaki. Emiru recognized the name almost immediately. Chihiro Fujisaki is known as the Ultimate Programmer. Emiru and many of the other members of the natural science club had utilized her programs to test theories in real time simulations. Her programs were cutting edge. She's also got that timid little bunny type thing going, which has endeared her to her legion of fans.

“...Huh? Maybe it's just my imagination, but...have we met before?”

Emiru paused a moment, mulling over the question a moment, and in a brief instant, there were these scenes that flashed before her eyes. Almost like memories. But they were too brief and sudden to make any sort of sense. Shaking her head clear of the previous thoughts, Emiru offered a light smile to the timid programmer.

“Nah, I don’t think so!” She stated outright, placing her hand behind her head once more, “Maybe we’ve seen each other at some of those stuffy science conferences. We use your programs all the time in our simulation tests.”

Though initially Chihiro seemed disappointed, she lit up a bit when Emiru mentioned using her programs.

“R-really? Y-you’ve used m-my programs?” Lighting up in response to Fujisaki, Emiru nodded her head.

“Yeah, we use them for almost all of our testing. I even used it to test my dark matter theory. They’re incredible.”

Chihiro blushed lightly and whispered a “Thank you.” Before moving to hide behind Ogami again. The martial artist turned to you and spoke next.

“So, you’re a second year here at Hope’s Peak?”

Emiru shrugged and rubbed the back of her head again.

“Upcoming. This is the end of my first year.”

“So, you’ve only been here a year and published a widely accepted scientific theory?” Togami interjected, seemingly surprised at Emiru’s intellectual prowess. Emiru could only smirk in response. She knew she was about to enjoy this.

“Oh no! I didn’t publish that my first year,” she mused, giggling lightly, “My teacher submitted that study for me when I was 15.”

The captivated “wow” from Fujisaki was enough to make Emiru laugh, drawing even more amusement from Togami’s beyond bewildered expression. 

“I suppose Hope’s Peak wasn’t kidding when they said ‘Best of the Best’” Ogami mused, clearly as amused by Togami’s response as Emiru was. The remainder of the class continued with introductions for a time, even as the time passed 8:00 AM, the time they had been instructed to meet for this introductory meeting. Emiru had almost forgotten until she pulled the flyer from her back pocket. She could feel her heart sink a bit when she remembered the predicament they were in. Holding a pamphlet up, she addressed the other students surrounding her.

“So, did anyone else find one of these?” The silence that fell over the group was enough to tell Emiru all she needed to know, “Thought so. Shot in the dark, but does anyone know anything about this?”

An anxious looking girl in a sailor school uniform named Fukawa spoke up. She pointed at Emiru as she did so, voice trembling.

“Y-You’re the upperclassman here. S-Shouldn’t you know what t-this is all a-about?”

Emiru had to agree, but the reality of their situation was she was as lost as they were.

“This is news to me,” Emiru began, looking over the pamphlet again, “We’ve never done a welcome ceremony this early in the morning. It’s always at the end of the day. Not to mention, these aren’t the school issued pamphlets I’m used to seeing.”

Silence fell over the group again, and Emiru noticed another student walk in at that moment. Glancing over at another nearby clock, Emiru made note of the time. 8:16 AM. The ceremony was going to be off to a late start. The dreadful feeling she’d had earlier returned.

With the new student, the total number of students was now 16. What the hell was going on?

Making her way back into the corridor, Emiru headed down the hall to the gym as the students spent their time introducing themselves to the late comer. The shadows cast off the hallways were still unsettling and everything about the school made Emiru increasingly nauseous. She wanted more then anything to close her eyes and wake herself from this disconcerting nightmare.

Turning the hall towards the gym entrance, Emiru stopped in her tracks as another wave of despair washed over her. The pit in her stomach continued to grow and honestly, all she wanted to do at this point was throw up. Maybe she’d finally find some relief that way.

Emiru was dragged out of her thoughts by a sudden alarm that seemed to sound through the entire school, as it echoed in every room and down every hallway.

**_*DING DONG, BING BONG!*_ **

A small monitor, similar to several others she had noticed through the parts of the school she had already seen, came to life. The screen illuminated, displaying a shadowy outline of what looked like a…teddy bear?

Within a few seconds of being displayed, the shape began to speak…

“Ahem! Ahem! Testing, testing! Mike check, one two! This is a test of the school broadcast system! Am I on? Can everyone hear me? Okay, well then...!”

The voice seemed totally out of place. It was so playful, so completely nonchalant... Emiru couldn't help but feel a deep, unnerving dread at the sound of it. It was like hearing someone laugh at the scene of an brutal crime.

“Ahh, to all incoming...and current students! I would like to begin the entrance ceremony at...right now! Please make your way to the gymnasium at your earliest convenience. ...That's all. I'll be waiting!”

That message only made the sickening feeling grow and Emiru was scared she may actually become visibly ill. Luckily, the feeling subsided a bit as she heard footsteps coming down the hallway toward the gym. From the sounds of it, it seems like the other students heard the same announcement. At least this may finally bring about some answers. Stepping through the doors to the gymnasium, Emiru made her way through the lobby into the main gym area. The stage was set at the other end from the double doors, and the gym was mainly empty, save a chairs set up on a large red carpet. A large podium stood on the stage, bearing the Hope’s Peak crest. But outside of the furniture setup, this was definitely not standard entrance ceremony practices. Where were the parents? The other classes? The teachers?

Anyone?

Emiru continued to stare around the gym for a few moments as she heard the other students enter. There was some light chatter, but for the most part, everyone seemed as confused as she was. She could feel the nauseated feeling returning. She did not have a good feeling about what was about to happen.

The voice from earlier cut through Emiru’s thoughts like a knife through flesh.

“Hey there, howdy, hello! Is everyone here? Good! Then let's get things rolling!”

Directing their attention to the podium in question, a large duo-colored stuffed animal flew out form behind the stand, airing a flair for the dramatics.

“Huh? A teddy bear?” Fujisaki questioned, obviously confused. The feeling was mutual.

“I'm not a teddy bear! I...am...Monokuma! And I am this school's headmaster!”

Something definitely wasn’t right. Emiru had met the principal of Hope’s Peak on a few occasions. This bear was not him. This was officially one of the strangest things she'd ever seen.

“Nice to meet you all!”

 _‘Was it, truly?’_ Emiru tried her damndest to cover the skepticism etched on her face, but was likely failing miserably. It had been a terrible issue of hers throughout most of her life. And it never failed to cause trouble. Such a bright voice and carefree attitude was completely out of place, especially given the other aspects of this dismal school. All that anxiety Emiru had been dealing with suddenly transformed into outright fear. She could feel her breath hitch in her throat and her body went rigid.

What was this reaction? This was not normal.

The reactions to Monokuma were universally a combination of confused and disbelieving. Several of the students grappled back and forth with the “Principal” for several moments, and he never missed an opportunity to inject a terrible bear pun into the conversation.

“How dare you compare me to a child's plaything! You've cut me deep. Deeper than the Mariana Trench...” Monokuma continued, “My remote control system is so complex, even the folks at NASA can't recreate or even comprehend it! Ah, but don't make me say stuff that might destroy NASA's dreams. I just couldn't BEAR that!”

"Bear" that? Really? That was trite, and honestly disappointing.”

Emiru hadn’t realized she’d spoken out loud until Monokuma made eye contact with her, sending another chilling wave through her spine. Now was not the time to be starting fights.

“You seem to forget who’s in charge here huh girly?”

The bear exposed three long claws on his left paw, obviously meant as a threat. Emiru was off put, but did not back down from the monochromatic bear. After a moment, he withdrew his claw and went back to addressing the class.

"Now then, moving on! We really must hurry and get started...”

Time seemed to pass at a snail’s pace, and the air suddenly grew thick.

“Now then, let us commence with a most noteworthy and memorable entrance ceremony! First, let's talk a bit about what your school life here will be like. Now, ah, make no mistake--you few students, so full of potential, represent the hope of the world. And to protect such splendid hope...” Monokuma paused an instant, seemingly to add a moment of suspense, “...you will all live a communal life together solely within the confines of this school. Everyone will live in harmony together, and adhere to the rules and regulations of the school.”

Emiru scrunched up her face in confusion, a look of mixed emotions on her face.

“But…that’s literally what we already do here.”

The students turned to Emiru, now equally confused. What was this bear playing at.

“Ah, now then...regarding the end date for this communal life...” Monokuma continued, seemingly unshaken by Emiru’s interjection, “There isn't one! In other words, you'll all be here until the day you die! Such is the school life you've been assigned.”

The entire gym fell silent. Emiru felt another hitch in her breath and tried to quiet her heartbeat, which she felt was about to burst out of her chest.

“Wh-What did he just say? Until the day we d-die...?” Fukawa spoke up, clearly panicked.

“Oh, but fear not! We have quite an abundant budget, so you won't lack for all the common conveniences,” Monokuma stated matter of factly, almost as if he were mocking the students in front of him.

“No offense, but I don’t think any of us gives a damn about “common conveniences” right now!” Emiru could feel the rage boiling up in her.

“Emiru's right! That's the least of our worries right now!” Sayaka also spoke up, clearly not amused by the bear any longer.

“Yeah, what the hell? You're saying I have to live here forever? You're screwing with us, right?” Junko questioned. Again, Emiru was very off put by the sound of her voice. Almost as much as she was by Monokuma.

“I am not screwing with you! I am no liar, of that you can be 100% sure. Ah, and just for your information...you're completely cut off from the outside world. So you don't have to worry about that dirty dirty land beyond these walls ever again!”

“Cut off...? So all those metal plates all over the school...” the 16th student, the one Emiru had not had a chance to meet spoke up for the first time, though his thoughts voiced everyone’s simultaneously.

“They're there to keep us trapped in here,” Emiru finished for him, assured that her assessment was correct.

“Correctamundo! That's exactly what they're there for. No matter how much you may yell and scream for help...help will not come. So with all of that in mind, feel free to live out your life here with reckless abandon!”

This couldn’t be real. There was no possible way this was real. Hope’s Peak….This was all wrong!

The atmosphere of the gymnasium seemed to reflect a similar feeling of discontent, as several objections and protests were heard from the other members of the student body. The sinking sick feeling came back and it took all Emiru had to resist the urge to vomit.

“Come, now. What's the matter with all of you? You decided of your own free will to attend Hope's Peak Academy, didn't you? And now, before the entrance ceremony is even finished, you've already decided you want to leave?”

It was all a sick joke to Monokuma. Emiru could read it in every word he spoke. He took joy in their pain, their confusion, their fear.

“Oh but you know... I guess I did forget to mention one thing. There *is* one way for you to leave the school...”

Eyes and ears perked at the statement and all attention immediately focused on the stuffed bear principal.

“R-Really...?” Fukawa whimpered, barely able to contain her anxious feelings.

“As headmaster, I've crafted a special clause for those of you who would like to leave! I call it...the Graduation Clause!”

So there was hope to leave this wretched school. Blessed be.

“Now, let me tell you about this fun little rule. As I mentioned, in order to maintain an environment of harmony here, we rely on a communal lifestyle. And if someone were to disrupt that harmony, they and they alone would be allowed to leave the school. That, my students, is the Graduation Clause!”

Emiru furrowed her brows, suspicion etched all over her face.

“What do you mean by "disrupt the harmony"?” Togami questioned, clearly disturbed by what the bear said. And honestly, Emiru couldn’t blame him.

“Puhuhu...,” Monokuma’s dark giggle broke out, echoing painfully off the gymnasium walls, “Well, you know... If one person were to murder another.”

The hush that fell over everyone was instant.

“M-Murder!?” the other student asked. He and all the others looked horrified.

“Stabbing, strangling, bludgeoning, crushing, hacking, drowning, igniting, how you do it doesn't matter. You must kill someone if you want to leave. It's as simple as that. The rest is up to you. Give it your all to achieve the best outcome in the worst way possible. Puhuhu. I bet *that* got your brain juices flowing! Beats the heck out of a human catching a salmon, huh? Like I said before, you guys are the hope of the world. But you know... Taking that hope and seeing it get murdered creates a darkened shadow of despair.

A chill shot down Emiru’s spine. " _You must kill someone if you want to leave_." The words rattled around in her head, and she could feel her breath quicken as her heartbeat began to race.

Seemed every one else was feeling as equally hysterical as they all tried to rationalize their circumstances and convince Monokuma to let go of the joke. When the bear refused, Emiru knew things were about to get a lot more serious.

**_“Dude, shut the hell up and get outta my way.”_ **

The words cut through Emiru’s train of thought and she looked up just in time to see Mondo Owada, Ultimate Gang Leader, turn his anger on Monokuma. Shoving Hiro, the Ultimate Clairvoyant, aside, Mondo placed himself in front of Monokuma, his voice rumbling like thunder.

“Listen up, asshole! This shit's gone way too far! What the hell kinda joke IS this!?”

“Joke? What, you mean like your hair?” Monokuma feigned confusion, clearly taking pride in his ability to stir up the student body.

 ** _“FFFUUUUUUUUUUUU--!”_** Mondo roared out, and with that, there was a sudden **BOOM!** as he kicked off the floorboards of the gym and launched himself into the air. He flew at Monokuma, fast and straight as a bullet. He'd locked on to his target and was fastly approaching the stuffed bear, snatching him up by his neck as he got close. Emiru could practically feel the rage oozing off of Mondo as he again began threatening the principal.

“Gotcha, you little piece of shit! I dunno if you're a toy or a stuffed animal or whatever the hell! Either way, I'm gonna rip you to fuckin' shreds!”

“Waah! Violence against the headmaster is in violation of school regulations!”

Emiru felt the pit in her stomach begin to knot up. She had a bad feeling about Mondo’s actions.

“Shut the fuck up! Let me outta here, or I swear to Christ...”

As if on cue, a faint beeping can be heard coming from Monokuma’s body. Emiru freezes, her blood once again running chill with ice.

“What, no smartass comeback this time!?”

The hairs on Emiru’s neck stand up as she notices the beeping speed up, as well as get louder.

“Stop that goddamn beeping and SAY SOMETHING!”

“STOP IT! Get rid of it!” Emiru hadn’t realized she’d yelled out until Mondo turned his attention to her in that moment. She froze, but continued, “It’s a bomb!”

“Huh...?” Mondo’s expression was a mix of confusion and dread but he didn’t have time to process what he said before another girl spoke up.

“Hurry up and throw it!” the purple haired female yelled out. Emiru wasn’t sure if her ferocity stunned him into silence or what, but without a word he did what he was told, throwing Monokuma towards to ceiling. No sooner had he let the bear loose from his grip and it made it’s way high above the students, the beeping stopped and a loud explosion broke out…

***KABOOM!***

The gravid silence that followed was only broken by the falling pieces of Monokuma as they tumbled to the floor below. 

“The hell!? Th-That sure as shit wasn't a joke. It blew the hell up...”

There was a painful ringing in Emiru’s ears, and the smell gunpowder permeated the air. Something about the smell was…familiar…almost reminded her of Satomi’s experiments.

“No shit.”

Emiru eyed Mondo with what she could only assume was annoyance and rage. He had almost gotten himself blown up for being too blind with anger to focus on anything else.

“Maybe next time, listen to your common sense instead of your temper Pompadour.”

She could feel Mondo’s stare piercing holes through her, but she could not care less in this moment. She was too focused on an escape plan. Any hole in what Monokuma had said. Anything else. The weight of their situation began bearing down on her once again.

“But you know... This means that the teddy bear's been destroyed, right?”

Chihiro’s meek voice broke through the chaos of Emiru’s mind in that moment, and for a moment she relaxed. She had a point.

If only the peace could last.

“I told you, I'm not a teddy bear! I'm Monokuma!”

Within the next moment, and exact replica of Monokuma emerged from an unknown source, bringing with him the same feeling of hopelessness from earlier. Emiru felt that this would not be the last time she would feel this sinking numbness.

Mondo began arguing with the bear once more and Emiru began to panic, fearing that they were about to witness another attempt on the biker’s life, though she felt that Monokuma would not be as “forgiving” in his next attempt. Luckily, the wrath of the stuffed animal seemed to subside for the time being and Emiru released a breath she didn’t realize she had been holding. 

“Now then, lastly... To commemorate your joyous entry into our school, I have a little something for you…”

From places unknown, the stuffed bear withdrew several small electronic tablets. Passing them out quickly, every student present received one and Emiru gave hers a reserved once over, listening closely for any suspicious noises. She would not have been surprised if the bear snuck explosives into the devices. However, after a few moments she relaxed and powered on the tablet, which lit up with a blue Hope’s Peak logo. She saw her name flash across the screen before coming to what she assumed was a “home” screen, which had several icons for different functions: Regulations, Map, Report Card, Presents, and something called Truth Bullets

‘Interesting…’

“This is our official student handbook! Pretty cool, huh? As you can see, it's fully digital. So naturally, we call it... The e-Handbook! This handbook is absolutely vital to a healthy school life, so don't lose it! When you start it up, it will display your name. Always make sure you have the right one!” pausing a moment, Monokuma continued, “Now, this is not your everyday notebook. It has so many more uses than that! Also, it's completely waterproof. Splash it, wash it, drown it, it'll keep on ticking! And thanks to its space-age design, it can withstand an impact force of up to ten tons. Very resistant! It contains all of our school regulations, so make sure you review them thoroughly!”

Monokuma ranted on a while longer about the rules and regulations, but Emiru spaced out again. After another moment, Monokuma disappeared and the atmosphere in the room shifted. Some students began to panic, rightfully so. Everything about this….it was dire indeed.

“Everyone, we need to just calm down,” the purple haired female from earlier, Kirigiri, spoke up, effectively calming everyone for an instant, “First, let's just take a second to summarize everything we just heard. Based on what Monokuma said, we essentially have two choice. Choice number one is that we each stay here, living a "communal life" together until the day we die. And the other choice is...”

“Killing someone.”

Emiru realized her response was blunt, but she was being realistic. Monokuma had almost blown up a student earlier, she didn’t see him deviating from his so called “regulations.”

“If we want to get out of here alive, we have to kill someone. Right?” Celestia, a gothic Lolita type spoke up. She seemed to agree with Emiru’s sentiments, albeit unwillingly. 

“But...killing someone... That's...” Chihiro spoke up again, on the verge of full blown tears. The panic broke out again and Emiru couldn’t help but get frustrated. She honestly wanted to scream.

“Right now it doesn't really matter if it's real or fake. What matters is,” Byakuya spoke up again, addressing the entire class in this moment, “Is there anyone here who's seriously considering all this...?”

Silence. Dreadful silence. That’s all that followed Byakuya’s question. No one spoke, but the silence was the loudest Emiru had ever experienced. They all stared at one another, trying to gauge each other's thoughts. You could almost taste the hostility. And that's when the true terror hidden within Monokuma’s rules finally made sense. The other shoe had finally dropped.

_"You must kill someone if you want to leave."_

_"You must kill someone if you want to leave."_

**_"You must kill someone if you want to leave."_ **

Those words, so simple, and yet so heavy had now planted malicious thoughts deep within everyone’s hearts. The room became heavy with suspicion of everyone else.

‘Would someone break?’ was the only though Emiru could muster. Yet that alone was enough to consume her with dread. Every single person in this room had just become her worst enemy.

And that was how this new school life began. If you could even call it a school. A place that had once housed so much light and hope.

This was now a school of despair.

**PROLOGUE**

**_Welcome to Despair High School_ **

**END**

**Surviving Students: 16**

_You have received the **School Crest** present_


End file.
